Pianist Krystian Zimerman to perform in four cities despite omicron surge

Polish pianist Krystian Zimerman is set to perform in Korea in the coming weeks after a couple of delays in ticketing.

The celebrated pianist will visit Korea later this month with some changes in the schedule, according to Mast Media, the organizer of Zimerman‘s recitals.

Previously, it was unclear whether Zimmerman, who travels with his own instrument, would be able to make it to the country as the recent surge in COVID-19 cases got in the way of transporting his piano. Amid the uncertainty, the ticketing for his recitals was delayed twice in January.

Zimerman will kick off the first of six recitals on Feb. 25 in Daegu, a city in North Gyeongsang Province.  

He will then move to port city Busan on Feb. 27. He will perform at Lotte Concert Hall in Seoul on March 1 and 2 before performing in Daejeon on March 4. To wrap up his Korea tour, he will return to Lotte Concert Hall on March 6.

For the tour, Zimerman will play J. S. Bach’s Partita No. 2 in B-flat major, BWV 825 and Partita No.2 in c minor, BWV 826; K Szymanowski’s 20 Mazurkas, Op. 50 No. 13-16; and Chopin’s Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58.

This tour is his third solo recital in Korea. He previously visited Korea in 2003 and 2019.

Zimerman gained broad recognition after winning First Prize at the International Fryderyk Chopin Competition in Warsaw in 1975. He has collaborated with numerous world renowned orchestras since. Last year, marking Beethoven‘s 250th birthday, Zimerman released an album of Beethoven’s complete piano concertos with the London Symphony Orchestra led by Simon Rattle under the Deutsche Grammophon label.

By Park Ga-young (gypark@heraldcorp.com)